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Lisa St. John's avatar

The orthopedic surgeon laughed when I couldn't answer his question. "You don't remember if you had surgery on your rotator cuff? I know you did. It's in your records." Well, when you have had as many surgeries and procedures as I have, they all run together. It's a habit, being used to pain. Like any other practice, you don't always realize that you are doing it until someone else points it out. I am trying to break the pattern. "How long have you lived with this pain?" is a question I have often gotten from doctors. Not anymore. As soon as my shoulder started crunching again, I made an appointment. Diagnosis? Tendinitis of right rotator cuff. A quick shot of steroids, a little physical therapy and I am right as rain. Again. My list of diagnoses (just from the orthopedic offices) include: Contusion of right wrist, Trochanteric bursitis of right hip, Lumbar spondylosis, Rotator cuff (capsule) sprain, Overweight. Oh. Yes, well, that’s the thing about bad habits. You have to WANT to break them.

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Shirlé Hale's avatar

Having played in bands for over 30 years created a habit with alcohol.

It's a habit of both me and my husband. When you are young, and after you have loaded in your band's equipment to play a show, the normal thing to do was to grab a beer or two while you waited to play. Then after the show you would socially drink and possibly head to an after hours hang at someones house and probably grabbing a case of beer for our fellow party goers. This was something we both did on a regular basis. Now, mind you, we were not alcoholics, because we could easily set out to not drink for any amount of time we choose, but because this was a social habit that occured around music, and we played music all the time, it was a regular habit. Now well into our 50's and not playing music live anymore our habit with alcohol has changed.

We no longer stay up all night, now going to bed at 9 or 10 pm most evenings and getting up at 7 am, and hangovers when imbibing a little too much is a killer at this age, but we still have wine every day. We dont drink to the point of getting drunk, but usually just have something nice with dinner, or have a glass at a beautiful outdoor kiosk.

I question this habit with alcohol when I meet people who either don't drink as much or dont drink at all. Why do we attribute alcohol with relaxation? Why do we associate drinking with being social? We have gone without drinking for a month at a time, say for Dry January or if we are sick, but we always return again because, well, water is boring.

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